Stressed Out? 7 Ways to Feel Completely Calm

April 27, 2014 By Lea_

One morning after hitting the snooze button one too many times I finally decide it was time to get up to go to work. After running around the house like a crazy person, because I slightly overslept, I finally got around to letting my dog out.

As I was getting him ready to run outside really quick, I noticed that he got sick in the corner. Great, I lost twenty minutes of my morning routine sleeping now I have to clean up my dog’s mess before breakfast.

Not only was I upset, I was stressed out. That just happened to be the morning at work that immediately started with a meeting and I couldn’t be late.

I wanted to be early and attentive but because of all this, I’d be lucky if I even got there on time.

The Pressure Starts Building

Finally, I get to work. The meeting I was panicking about gets delayed. Wish I knew that was going to happen this morning when I was cleaning up Fido’s dinner off the floor.

Then at the last possible moment, the meeting was canceled completely. All because of something my boss should’ve sorted out the previous week.

Now I realize my morning was horrid for nothing. The very reason I was zipping around no longer exists.

The Bubble Bursts

I spend nearly a half an hour working on a specific part of a project. It was tedious, but I did get it done.

As I submit the info to be saved the worse thing, especially after the morning I had, happened. The computer started to crash. It froze, I was hitting the button but nothing was happening.

Then after a couple minutes, the other applications started to refresh themselves, so maybe there was a chance it would go through. Except the specific one I was using timed out.

Everything I entered, every single word was gone. It couldn’t be recovered.

I wanted to scream! I wanted to curse! Most of all I wanted to throw my laptop across the room. I have to start over. It seemed like nothing was working out for me that day.

Before the evening set in I was completely stressed out.

Getting Stressed Out

Stress is an unavoidable part of life. No matter what you do or who you are it finds its way in.

But the problem isn’t really stress, itself. The real problem is what happens when you have too much at once and you don’t know how to manage stress.

It can start to destroy you. Not just by shredding your sanity but stress can also poison your physical health.

And the last thing you want to do is get so used to living on edge that you become one with this nervous energy.

Being stressed out or on high alert should not be anyone’s idea of normal, simply because it’s not. Not to mention it sucks the fun out of life.

To keep your sanity, be able focus and relax you have to learn how to manage stress.

How to Relieve Stress

1. Work it out

Take out your frustration on a punching bag. Run on the treadmill to clear your head.

Do some form of exercise with at least a moderate level of intensity, that will help get rid of the stress.

2. Get out

Being outside in nature is a great way to de-stress. You don’t necessarily need to go deep into the woods. A walk around your neighborhood or just sitting on a park bench for 10 to 15 minutes can do the trick.

Just don’t think about your problems. Focus on your surroundings.

3. Get a day off

Take a break from things. Everyone needs a little space and time to regroup.

Take a day to get your mind off of things and enjoy life a bit. Focus on what you’re doing, not your difficulties.

4. Take a breath

This is great to do when you can’t get away, and one of my faves. Sometimes you have to respond or demonstrate acknowledgement in a timely manner and can’t get any space.

If in the moment you don’t have the luxury to take some time to get yourself together, take 3-5 deep breathes to control the stress and give yourself a quick moment to relax to effectively respond.

Once you start to master this one or two deep breathes will do the trick.

5. Turn up the tunes

I always do this in traffic. When the fact that I’m stuck on a 3 lane parking lot when I could’ve been at my destination already gets me all riled up, I just lose myself in the music.

I do this while still being attentive to the road of course.

6. Go offline

This can be even more effective when you couple it with any of the above mentioned methods, or even when you meditate.

Put your phone in airplane mode, it will prevent the transmission of calls and texts. Turn off your computer too. Just stay connected to the things that are right there with you.

Focus on your immediate surroundings. Relax, read a book, meditate.

7. Have fun

Gather your friends and do something really fun. Grab a drink, head out for a local adventure, do something and hang with people who make you laugh.

You can’t completely eliminate stress from your life but it can seem like a little bump in the road rather than a huge mountain if you know how to manage it.

Don’t let stress paralyze or take over your life. Take action so you can start to feel better again.

Try one or all of these ways to relieve stress. Coping with your difficulties effectively is essential to achieving your goals and living the peaceful life you imagined.

Lea is a certified life coach, foodie and lifehack expert. Don’t end up like the millions of people who gave up on their dreams, get unstuck and to the next level. Take the eye-opening Live Your Dreams course now to get moving!

I love your points here especially the part where you say that stress isn’t the problem, it’s how we deal with it. I couldn’t agree more. Stress itself is a normal everyday thing that we all have to deal with. We just can’t get rid of it. What we can do is react to it.

For me, taking a few deep breaths helps. That’s it. Although I have to say when things get really out of hand, I have to do even more. Sometimes I have to take a walk or talk it out.

Exactly. Stress actually makes life a bit more eventful. Not saying we should ask for more of it but life would be pretty ho-hum without a little excitement.

Me too Steve! Breathing typically helps me. Meditating also help me at the end of a hectic day, just to make sure I stay on track.

Lea

Welcome to the Leading Edge, I'm Lea. Here is where you'll find the support you need to get over the roadblocks and live the life that only seemed possible in your dreams. It may seem far fetched now but believe me it's not. I'm living proof! Read More…